When I Ball

My momma said I didn't come into this world with tears
Instead I welcomed her with open eyes and open ears
Became the glue to a few things that couldn't be repaired
We saw a future in each other, blending hope and fear
Some things you don't get to decide, it's just the fate you share
I used to try to hold the weight, that she would need to bear
Watched uncles going on vacation for a couple years
Whеn they came back, they needеd clothes, and had no souvenirs

I picked up the phone, they callin' us from correction
But nothin' is wrong, it's fillin' my heart with questions
My momma is home, I'm followin' her expressions
A drop in her tone, some things that she had to mention
I nodded, I listened, she had all of my attention
"When you on your own, there's gonna be some directions
I need you to follow, and never make an exception"
I nodded, she held me, and wished I would be protected

You always used to tell me
I could be anything I wanna be
But it's hard to see, it's hard to be
You always used to tell me
I could be anything I wanna be
But it's hard to see, it's hard to be

On my sucker-free shit since I was a fetus
Pullin' up at the doc' in a Mazda 626
And my dad was trippin' bad, hit the gas like car chase
Light blue in the back, momma gettin' late for pay
Dropped my sister at the bozo house, was 23
Sweat drippin' down the face side, river runnin' free
Dark mornin' with the fog pourin' in and out the trees
Every movement through they eyes
Seem to zoom at lightspeed before me

She lost, one still born tragedy
Grittin' her teeth down to the root, pain, like a cavity
Hold her hands like they glue, radio channel on news
Valentine's with a X up on the calendar, they knew
I would be a fuckin' baller like them posters on the wall
A little stain could be the beauty in it all
Amidst all the trouble, most your luck was rubbin' off
Stickin' to you like moss, you my Kate, you my rock
Forever

You always used to tell me
I could be anything I wanna be
But it's hard to see, it's hard to be
You always used to tell me
I could be anything I wanna be
But it's hard to see, it's hard to be (with you)

Here I go, I'm gonna spread my wings
All grown up like go and look at me
You'll always be (you'll always be)
A part of me (a part of me)
Here I go, I'm gonna spread my wings
All grown up like go and look at me
You'll always be (you'll always be)
A part of me (a part of me)

That's why
A part of me, a part of me, a part of me, a part of me
A part of me, a part of me, a part of me, a part of me
That's why